Hello everyone! It’s been a bit quiet on my end, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t doing anything. Far from it, to be honest. Bren and I have been very busy with work these past months and there’s no sign that’ll change any time soon with our webshop becoming more and more of a real company. Last weekend we spent quite some time making a To-Do list, as we’ve got quite a few things to take care of to make everything as official as it gets. Then I realised that we’re nearing December and traditionally, this is a month to look back at the past year and, perhaps more importantly, to look forward to what the next year is going to bring us. Traditionally, the first half of December is spent doing retrospection and introspection as I want to take some time to reflect on the year and doing some soul searching.

Nearing the shortest day

We’re quickly approaching the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. It’s a period where we typically spend most of our time indoors and more secluded from other people. Here in the Netherlands it is usually a very rainy period too, which makes the days feel dreary and cold. The perfect time to snuggle up, finish some of those books that have been piling up on your TBR pile, but also great for reflecting on what this year has brought you. These coming weeks you can expect a lot of these blogs from me, focussing on my annual goals, the ups and downs of this year and the best books and videogames that I have experienced this year. We are never too old to learn new things and although this year didn’t go as planned (which you can read about soon), I still learned a lot specifically because things went in a different direction than I had anticipated. Life is often not going as we wish, or planned it to be and it is our ability to adapt to and accept these changes that will ultimately decide our character. If anything my Stoic studies have helped me to cope with the unforeseen changes this year has brought me, and it definitely helped me to deal with one of the biggest losses I’ve had to process this year. Even though I still feel the loss of our cat Bobbie, I don’t think I would have been able to deal with her death as well as I have, thanks to my Stoic lifestyle.

And beyond the shortest day

After the retrospectives comes the time to look forward. Once we pass the winter solstice, it is time to look forward and make plans for the new year. I’ve been writing down ten annual goals for a long time now and I find it helps me focus on what is important for me, as a person. Next year is going to be an exciting new year, as Bren and I are going to take our shared business to a new level and plan to combine our strengths even further to make our dream a big success. That means that my creative writing will play an even bigger role next year, as we require top quality content to tie in with products we sell. It also means I’ll have a lot of studying to do regarding Pagan and traditional Witchcraft rituals and lore. I never thought I would study those particular subjects, but here we are. Although I consider myself a devout follower of the scientific method and am also a full time skeptic, there’s a lot of interesting history behind these subjects and the more I read about it, or learn from Bren, the more I try to view it from my own perspective, which I think can lead to some interesting conclusions.

2023 is going to be exciting!

If you haven’t read it between the lines yet, I’m very excited about 2023. 2022 was a bit of a mixed bag, which I’ll tell you all about in upcoming blogs, as I reflect on the year. Overall it has been a pretty good year, with a lot of changes for the better and definitely a few big steps for both Bren and me, but at the same time there’s been some other changes that I really could have done without. I still miss our cat Bobbie dearly and our home has been a lot quieter ever since she was gone. Life has also become increasingly more expensive and that’s something we all have to deal with, too. Anyways, I digress, as usual. I am truly excited about next year, for several reasons, but most importantly the fact that Bren and I are going to take our relationship to another level. It’s so awesome to see what a true interdependent relationship can lead to and it makes me wish everyone could experience the joy of such a relationship.

Hope you’re all having a good one!

Jeffrey